Paul Field & Betty Spackman

The Hollow Hotel

I checked in to the Hollow Hotel
Halfway to heaven
Halfway to hell     
Don’t know how long I’ll stay here
Only time will tell
So much I just don’t know
But that’s the way things go
Here in the Hollow Hotel

On the wall of my room is a picture
It’s a painting of the map of my life
And the road stretching out behind me
Full of trouble and strife
Paved with the doubts and fears
They have brought me here
To the Hollow Hotel tonight

Been on the road just a little too long
I’m running out of money
Running out of song
I don’t wanna stay here
Somehow everything feels wrong
In the Hollow Hotel

In the Hollow Hotel I sit dreaming
Of all the lost lovers and friends
Stories that just had beginnings
Stories that only had ends
Just need some time to breathe
Before I’m ready to leave
The Hollow Hotel again

Been on the road just a little too long
The need to be searching
Is always so strong
But still in my heart
I know I really don’t belong
In the Hollow Hotel

I always carry the best of intentions 
Like a suitcase I never unpack
Tell myself I’ll check out in the morning
And get my life back on track
I’m gonna break this spell
Leave the Hollow Hotel
And never come back

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Words & Music : Paul Field & Betty Spackman

Images: Betty Spackman

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Paul Field has worked since 1976 as a Songwriter, Composer, Producer and Performer in the UK and around the world. He has received an Ivor Novello Award from the British Academy of Songwriters and Composers and a Dove Award (and two nominations) from GMA in Nashville along with numerous other awards from ASCAP in the USA. He has had #1 chart success with his songs in the UK, USA, Holland, South Africa and Germany and has received many Platinum and Gold records for his songs. He’s also worked as a part time Lecturer at Bath Spa University on their MA Songwriting course, critiquing students work and leading several Master classes. He also runs his own Songwriting workshops. Recently he’s written & produced 'The Stolen lives project' in collaboration with The Wilberforce Institute at Hull University. http://​www.stolenlives.co.uk​. For more, see http://www.paulfield.com and a lot of music on http://www.paulfield.bandcamp.com

Betty Spackman is a Canadian multimedia installation artist and painter with a background in theatre, animation, performance art and video art. She has exhibited internationally and taught studio art at various universities and community arts programs for over 20 years. She has written, illustrated and published art related books and has collaborated, taught and spoken at conferences and galleries in Canada, Europe, the US and Mexico. A Profound Weakness: Christians and Kitsch, Spackman’s 500p illustrated book published in 2005 by Piquant Editions, UK is a personal journal and commentary about images of faith in popular culture. Spackman is also a mentor and community arts educator and has developed The Open Studio Program, an alternative community education model for emerging artists used in Yellowknife, NWT, Medicine Hat, AB, and Langley, BC. Her work has focused on cultural objects and the stories connected to them with a more recent focus on issues of animal/human relations. FOUND WANTING, a Multimedia Installation Regarding Grief and Gratitude (2010-2014) was a 3000 square feet installation project built around a large collection of animal bones and addressed issues of the killing and commodification of animals. Her most recent book and installation project is A Creature Chronicle. Considering Creation: Faith and Fable, Fact and Fiction (2019/2020). https://www.artlyst.com/features/betty-spackman-posthumanism-debates-interview-revd-jonathan-evens/

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